The Summery Woes
by Flickering Windows
Summary: Tenten expected her vacation to be better, but thoughts like that didn't really exist when she has nothing to do. That, and the fact that the 'populars' were stalking her all of the time. Romance. Drama.Humor.All so blinding. Multiple pairings.
1. Chapter 1

Beams of unsparing light shone on the weary town beneath

Beams of unsparing light shone on the weary town beneath. It was the starting point of summer, where black hair turned brown and constant perspiration led to unpleasant smells. Typical. Tenten chewed on a piece of gum that lost its flavor, occasionally blowing a light pink bubble while staring out the window. It was summer vacation, and she had been looking forward to it _all_ year, but right now, she wished she _hadn't_. A warm and dusty breeze wafted in through the open window, and she released a pent-up sigh.

"So much for summer." Tenten murmured sarcastically. Standing up off of the plain brown chair, she shifted her knee to the edge of the windowsill, letting her weight dangle on it. Then, she swung her other leg over and jumped gracefully out the window, landing on her two feet. Music pumped into one ear, while another earphone lay dangling at her side. Sighing once again, she couldn't help but scoff at her own situation.

It was 5 days after the last day of school, and instead of going on trips with friends like the other people she knew were, she was stuck at home for the whole gosh-darned summer. And her parents (currently at a trip in the mainland Asia) said it was supposed to be _fun_. Tenten rolled her eyes. What part of this was _fun_?

"…You! Hey you! Watch out!" She turned around and was met with the view of a speeding metal shopping cart filled with metal boxes and the like rushing toward her. Sighing as it came towards her, she placed her palm against one of the boxes and jumped over the cart, her feet sweeping when she pulled the cart back with one hand and held her balance with another. A group of people sprinted over to her, panting in exhaustion from chasing the cart. Tenten recognized the stupid fools; they were the supposedly 'popular' crowd from the prestigious school Fire-Leaf Academy, Konoha Branch, currently her school of attendance. Of course, since she wasn't rich like the other students, she was there on scholarship.

"We're, like, so sorry. 'Cause there was this, like, really, like, hot guy. And I didn't really, like, notice. The cart moving. So, sorry!" The school prep (who was always wearing indecent length skirts and tops) declared-er- _preppily _her blond hair marking her as Ino Yamanaka, the most popular girl. Tenten really didn't care. So when other populars came to apologize to her, or insult her, or both, she gave only one answer to all of them.

"Huh? What were you saying?" Tenten, of course, was daydreaming of what to do with her summer and the delectable thoughts of sweet, tasty dango, and was too busy to notice the squawking chickens that came. Well, they sounded like chickens to her uninterested and I-don't-really-care-I-want-dango mind. Because of this, an exhausted and pissed off popular named Hyuuga Neji went up to her, and said something that he would regret. A calmer, but still angry, Uchiha Sasuke followed.

"Don't you know I am?" They both said in unison, but interrupted by the breakout of squeals and cheers in the background. Tenten tilted her head to the side in habit, raising a hand to point at Neji.

"You're…Whitey" she shifted her index finger to Sasuke's direction, "and you're…Ducky." Tenten responded emotionlessly, her natural monotone obvious. her parents and brother had always referred to it as 'troublesome'. But, habits like hers die hard. Especially since she was born with them.

"What?!" She listened to the wonderful chorus of voices before running past the angry group and hoping to find a hiding place at her part-time job. And maybe grab some of Anko Mitarashi's homemade dango along the way.


	2. Chapter 2: Phase I

"Oi, Ten! Where's the dango I left on the table?" A voice reached Tenten's ears when she looked up from the laptop, minimizing the window of her IM and opening a window with online manga. Not like she had anything else to do.

"Hmm? Oh, you mean the ones in the plastic wrap?" She responded in the same tone as her brother, who was currently looking for the leftover dango. Pausing to think of it, she heard a faint 'Yeah, that one' come from downstairs.

"I ate it." She said it bluntly and blankly. No need wasting her energy on exclamations and elongated explanations. She heard footsteps approach her room, and an irritated Shikamaru stood in the doorway.

"Do you have to eat all the leftovers all the time? Sheesh." Tenten rolled her eyes at his complaint. Gawd, men and their dominance.

" Well, stupid little brother, I wouldn't have eaten it if it wasn't left out like that. I'm not that desperate to go digging for food, anyway. Besides, you're getting pudgy in the middle." Shikamaru looked down at his stomach, scoffing when he saw it was the same near to flat. He glared at her.

"No I'm not. Even if I was, you'd get pudgier than I would since you eat almost everything in your sight. You giant Panda-monster." Tenten twitched, and Shikamaru ran away from said girl, who currently wielded a baseball bat. And it was metal, too.

Deer- Panda- Deer- Panda- Deer- Panda- Deer- Panda-

"Tomatoes, Dango, Fish sauce, Rice, and Eggs. Check." Tenten scanned the messy writing known as her uncle's shopping list. Whenever her parents were away, he always took care of them, but his habit of bringing over random women pissed her off, especially when they violated the spot-clean couch. Shikamaru was supposed to do the shopping, but his lazy ass wasn't capable of walking of walking a few blocks. Tenten didn't know exactly how he stay fit, or maybe she did.

Both she and Shikamaru were adopted, anyway; she was already 12 by the time she was adopted, but she had adapted well to her new family. Shikamaru, on the other hand, was only a year younger than her, but had been adopted when he was only 7 years old. But, she had gotten along with him as well. Still, nobody knew they were related, even if they had no blood relations at all. Shaking thoughts like that out of her head, she headed to the cashier, who coincidentally was helping her former 'friend' Sakura. Back when Tenten was new, Sakura had been new too, and had been her friend. She used to care a lot for Sakura, but now she'd be bitching and throwing a fit before she could admit it. Sakura had taken the path to being a rich popular who was a total conniving bitch, and Tenten wanted away from the rosette.

"Oh. Hi! Tenten! Nice to see you again!" Tenten twitched at the fake smile and the overly-girly giggle that came from Sakura. The rosette pointed at her bags, Tenten had a feeling that this was her duty. As if.

"Uh…yeah. Hi. Could you please get out of the way? I'm trying to pay for my stuff." Sakura looked astounded at her defiance. Turning away with a 'Hmph', a bodyguard picked up Sakura's bags and left the store with her. Setting the contents of the plastic basket onto the conveyor belt, Tenten was met with a pair of dark eyes and dark hair, but his eye-bags and strange coughing stood out. Her eyes widened in recognition.

"Hayate? I didn't know you worked here." The man looked up, and let out a charming smile. He coughed, clearing his throat.

"Yeah, it's another part-time, since I have nothing to do. Well…I have off in a few minutes, so want to go out for a while?" He suggested. She beamed and grinned, her first _real_ smile outside of the house. Tenten could feel the feelings she once had for the strange man resurface in a matter of moments. She laughed, something she hadn't done in such a long time, and she laughed a bit more at the surprised look on the older man's face. Grabbing the plastic bags, she walked alongside Hayate outside the store. Outside, Tenten wasn't smiling right now, but she seemed pleased. Hayate, who was 4 years her senior, was what she considered a _real_ gentleman, in her eyes. True, she did have a crush on him while he was still in high school, and she in middle school, but that didn't mean that she still did. Or, maybe she still did, but that's not the point. Her family, especially Shikamaru and her mom, teased her endlessly about it, especially after the fact Hayate had asked for a kiss from her at his graduation party.

"Here we are!" Hayate's voice interrupted her thoughts. She knew this place…it was a small and hidden café', but still popular nonetheless. She used to go here a lot, but when he graduated, she hadn't had the chance. They sat down at a table for 2, and both of them couldn't help but blush at the familiarity. They chatted for a while, simply enjoying the company and the latter. What she didn't notice was the populars flashing secret pictures of her 'date' with Hayate. And to think that summer was almost over once it first began… The new school year was approaching, and the rumors would start flying around. But, of course, she didn't suspect that one bit.


	3. Chapter 3: Phase IPt2

"Don't stop

"Don't stop!" A voice from the T.V. said erotically. Tenten looked disgusted when she walked into her brother's room to fix the hole in the wall (courtesy of the metal bat) and saw his group of perverted and psychopathic friends viewing a fresh round of porn on the newly bought T.V. After discreetly fixing the wall, which was now covered in duct tape and misused staples and nails, she took out a neon orange baseball bat she bought from the grocery store in all its cheap plastic glory. With that, she whacked each and every dopamine and hormone-possessed guy in the head at least 3 times, without even sparing her oh-so adorable little brother after he commented that she looked like something that came from Inuyasha.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Achoo! Achoo!" The chorus of sneezing teenage boys filled Tenten's room like thick gravy. After the plastic bat was thrown carelessly out the window, the closet perverts had been thrown out with it. Shortly after, a heavy rain poured on the boys (Shikamaru explained they were kicked out of their house, that's why they were sleeping over) and after an hour long punishment of the rain-that-could-be-dog-pee and being forced to run laps around in the rain under the command of Tenten yelling out the window, they filed inside. What Tenten didn't understand, though, was this.

"This is a pretty big house… so why are you all in my room? Can't you go to Shikamaru's room instead?" Tenten twitched at the sight of past-adolescence 'men' that were spread out comfortably in her room, especially Kiba, who was sprawled out on her bed in the pajamas he brought.

"Because, dear adorable, beautiful, curvy, C+ cup Tenten," Kiba started, "people like me enjoy the company of people like you, because you're so cute! Okay?" He finished in a loud voice. Others nodded. (Soon they were chased out by the metal bat Tenten had dubbed Kill-Kenny.) That night, all of the males in the household were distributed evenly throughout the house, except for Kiba, who insisted that he sleep in her room, hell, next to her in her bed, for old times' sake. Pscha. And you know what he asked her to do next? Kiba asked her to take a nice, long bubble bath with him for _old times' sake._ He was knocked out cold after that, so she slept peacefully. Sure, she had done a lot of those things with him when they were little kids (she shook the thoughts that she bathed with him till she was 10-11 out of her head, no one needed to know that) but she was know 16, albeit a late bloomer, and she had to get rid of those childish activities and habits. She simply closed her eyes and let out a sigh as she fell asleep.

Meanwhile, the rain poured outside, shielding a figure from notice, as well as the fancy waterproof camera.


	4. Chapter 4: Phase I :Extra

Wiping the chocolate syrup off the front of her shirt, Tenten seethed and twitched at the thought of the chocolate-syrup gun w

Wiping the chocolate syrup off the front of her shirt, Tenten seethed and twitched at the thought of the chocolate-syrup gun wielding Sai. Sai was their distant cousin, but they had somewhat ended up pretty close. So when she let him in their house, the first thing he had done was sprayed her whole shirt with yummy, fudge, chocolate syrup. And so, hiding in the kitchen, Tenten loaded her two Mega water-guns with cheese (the red one) and Sprite (the blue one). Tenten heard someone approaching, and peeking outside of the sliding door, it was Sai sure enough, still holding his chocolate gun and a bottle of Hershey's Chocolate syrup, which was still very full, unfortunately. She aimed her Sprite gun at his unsuspecting back, and pressing the sturdy plastic pump trigger, it went ZHHAAA! He was soaked in the sweet fly-attracting goodness of soda pop. Sai threw the doors open and Tenten shot the cheese one instead, so he was now covered with cheese and sticky soda. He twitched, his fake smile turning evil with sharp teeth.

"So that's how you IS! Hyaa!" He squirted her with more chocolate, and right when she was going to retaliate, they were both smacked to the floor by the plastic bat she threw out the window a few days ago, by none other than a pissed off Shikamaru.

"You two…. "grabbing both Sai and Tenten by the backs of their shirts, he threw them unsparingly on the crimson red (Tenten and Sai said it would look awesome with black) couch, while the other couch was already occupied. The annoying zits on the face of her life, the populars, were sitting there, looking amazed at the 2 idiots on the other couch.

Sai whispered to her and her to him, while they still clutched the large kiddy arsenal. "Let's go."

"Pow! Pow! Pow! Buuurn, baby, buurn!" They said simultaneously while they fired the wanna-be weapons in the unsuspecting faces of the sissies that sat across them.

"KYAAAH! My extensions are falling off!" Tenten and Sai snickered, crawling into the dining room while no-one (they shot at Shikamaru too) was watching. Before they could escape, however, a pair of hands belonging to the said Deer-man dragged them back to a group of very, very, angry people.


	5. Chapter 5: Phase II

They stared. And stared. Hinata, who just happened to knock on Tenten's door at the wrong time, fidgeted under the heated gaze of the 'populars', while next to her, both clad in dark black and neon colors, were Tenten and her cousin Sai.

"Who are you to dump all that stuff on me? Don't you know who I am?" Ino asked, while Sakura glared, trying to scoot between the two prodigies, who were insulted a few chapters ago by the same question.

"Here we go again," Tenten said, rolling her eyes while Sai yawned and stretched his arms around a stuffed panda that was oh-so conveniently placed on top of the pillow. "Of course I know who you are, Blondie. Not all blondes are dumb, but you're one of the unintelligent few, Yamanaka."

"What did you say? Whatever it was, say it to my face! Now!" Ino screeched, being held back by Sakura and Karin, who were undoubtedly laughing at the pig-girl's face.

Sai laughed. "Let me reiterate for you. You are P-L-A-S-T-I-C!" He said, laughing out loud, while Shikamaru, who tied Sai, Tenten, and Hinata to the couch for safety measures (except for Hinata, who volunteered to share the pain) sniggered loudly. Oh, lookie! The deer-man is doing a handshake with the somewhat-disparate man! Ino choked visibly.

"You laughed! Oh my god! That is, like, so weird!" Ino exclaimed, obviously very, very surprised.

"What? You never saw a person laugh before?" A voice came from the window. They all looked up, except for Sai and Tenten, who were too busy undoing the rope that held them to the furniture. Hinata looked up at Temari with watery and pleading eyes that clearly said 'Help me! Help me! Get me away from those idiots!' Temari raised an eyebrow, and jumped off the windowsill.

"You know Shikamaru…if I hadn't known you guys were related, I would've thought you were going to rape Tenten and Sai…or even Hinata." Temari said suspiciously, while her eyes scanned over the gaping fishes holding back a jealous looking Piggy-girl. Shikamaru scoffed, choking on air.

"How can you talk to my Shika like that! No one does that but me!" Ino yelled, making an attempt to pull Shikamaru towards her, but he easily side-stepped, hiding behind the couch in disgust. Temari simply smirked.

"Oh really? Then watch this closely. Very closely." She pulled Shikamaru away from his cowardly position behind the furniture and went SMACK! right on the lips. The 'populars' gaped in shock, while Tenten and the other idiot Sai handed Hinata 5 dollars each, because they sucked at winning bets. Temari smirked. Shikamaru turned away blushing. The ones tied to the couch chortled in laughter.

"Now that, dear friends, is what I call drama." Sai said calmly before pulling the secretly untied rope off from around Tenten and Hinata's waist, and grabbing Tenten's hand (Hinata hid behind Temari) and running behind the couch of the populars. "Don't mind us! We're just eavesdropping shadows! Now, don't notice us!"

"Er…yeah. Don't mind us. Ehehehe….Hey Sai, can I borrow your Ipod?" Tenten asked, whispering the last part.

"Sure…but why are you whispering?" Sai whispered back.

"I don't know…but its kinda fun, you know…makes you think of those cool army guys with walky-talkies, huh?" Tenten whispered, putting in the earphones while she sat next to Sai comfortably. Neji Hyuuga peered down at them from the couch, raising a well-plucked eyebrow before facing front again.

"Well, anyway…The group project is 600 points for our grade and another 100 for extra credit, so we should decide how it's going to be done." Shikamaru recited, fluffing up the sad excuse for a pineapple on his head. "Neji, Sasuke, and I will do the main writing, typing, and all that general stuff. Ino and Sakura will bring the materials."

"That's all then?" Neji asked, eyeing the brunette behind the couch, who had let her hair down.

"Well yeah. The teacher agreed to let us recruit extra help…so, I chose those two stinkin' morons over there." Shikamaru responded, pointing to the confused-looking weirdos behind the upholstered couch (WOW! I sound so fancy!) Awkward silence, and when it sunk into all of their brains, Temari, Hinata, and Shikamaru covered their ears.

"WHAT THE HELL?!"


	6. Chapter 6: Phase II Pt 2

August Delusions

August Delusions

"Hey, Ten! Wake up!" Shikamaru said, peering into Tenten's room. The large lump on the bed shifted slowly, before a hand emerged and waved him off. He scowled. "And they say I'm the lazy one." He stumbled down the stairs, muttering troublesome all the way.

"Stupid troublesome old man." The figure residing under the comforter said, irritated, while she got out of bed. She lightly kicked the person on the other bed, until he stirred and sat up. "Oi, wake up. The deer is angry."

"Bleh. Who cares about him?" Sai sat up, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. He groaned. "Why is it so freaking hot here? I thought the air-con was on." He got out of the bed, while Tenten finished folding her sheets and moved onto his.

"Because it's summer, dumbass." She declared nonchalantly, while Sai glared at her.

"Watch your language, young lady! I can hear you!" Tenten's mom, Kurenai, yelled from downstairs. Sai snickered.

"Yeah, watch your mouth, stupid-ass." He retorted, directing it to Tenten.

"You too, young man! I can hear you too!" Sai's head dropped, Tenten snickered, and the cool rush of air-conditioning hit them like a football.

"Ah, kids. So energetic these days." Tenten's dad, Asuma, said apathetically, and they heard the slap when her mom's hand met her dad's head.

"That's encouraging them, you know," Kurenai argued. And it kept going on like that until Shikamaru returned from the market with 2 bags of …groceries. What else would it be, anyway? Lingerie?

"Oh my gosh! Shika-kun! I didn't know you were going this way too!" A blonde said, the girl appearing from behind him. Yamanaka Ino.

"Yes you did. You and your weird friends were stalking me." He said matter-of-factly, running his vacant hand through his pineapple head.

"Shikamaru! That's no way to talk to a lady!" Shikamaru winced when Kurenai's voice (and hand) reached his head. "Invite her in!"

"Hai, hai. Oi, Yamanaka, you can go in. And your weird friends." He muttered, dropping the groceries ungracefully on the counter and plopping down on the couch. Ino quickly threw off her shoes while a group of people filed in.

"Shika-kun! What are you doing?" She asked eyeing his face mischievously.

"Taking a nap. What else do I do, anyway?" He drawled, yawning. She was bout to respond when a large crash came from upstairs.

"I'm using this bathroom!" A female voice argued.

"Yeah, but you're done already! Let me use it!" A male voice retorted, and both seemed quite pissed.

"Can't you see I'm only in a towel?! Sheesh! Wait your turn, naggy old man!" The girl yelled.

"Yeah! I'm only in a towel too! So move over! You stupid bathroom monster!" The boy exclaimed.

"GRAARH!" Came the scream, in unison, from the two morons arguing over the bathroom, when there were others around.

"Again? And I thought they learned to share." Shikamaru muttered as he got up to break up the pointless fight. Again, noises came from upstairs. The Uchiha, who was sitting on the couch boredly, raised an eyebrow. This, if you should know, is not a good sign.

"What the heck happened?" Kurenai asked, when Shikamaru dragged two towel-clad people, hair dripping wet, down stairs. The group recognized them, choking on their drinks as they did. The pointless arguing was from that weird boy Sai, and his partner-in-crime, Shikamaru's sister, Tenten.

"Apparently, they were fighting over the bathroom again." Asuma declared, taking a drag of his cigarette while he skimmed through the newspaper.

"It was him!" Tenten said, her glare pointed at Sai.

"Lies! It was her!" Sai yelled angrily, glaring at the brunette. That went on for a few seconds, until they started making retarded squinty faces at each other, and they broke out laughing, doubled over in laughter.

"You know what? Just go upstairs and get dressed." Kurenai ordered, waving them off.

"Hm? What happened here?" A sandy blonde emerged from the top of the staircase, her hair newly-dried and put into four ponytails. She turned to Tenten. "The bathroom's available." With that, the half-naked adolescents raced up the stairs, stumbling and cursing along the way.

"My, my. How they've grown up." Everyone turned to the silver-haired man sitting on the windowsill, holding up a little orange book, focused on the brunette running for the bathroom.

"Kakashi, quit staring at my daughter." Asuma yawned, setting down his newspaper on the table. He gave Kakashi a sharp glance before heading out. "Well, time for work." Kurenai sent him off, and the younger ones were left to think in silence.

"Well," Shikamaru said, "let's get this troublesome project over with." As he said that, Sai and Tenten pattered down the stairs, Sai wearing regular shorts and a white shirt with the character for Samurai on the front, while Tenten wore dark blue Bermuda shorts and a white Monokuro Boo shirt. They held aprons, and a variety of art supplies and the like.

"Are we starting now?" Tenten asked. She held a box of paintbrushes and Sai carried the paints.

"Neji, Sasuke, carry the board in." Shikamaru declared.


	7. Chapter 7: What Was Once There

What Was Once There

What Was Once There

Tenten sang quietly with the light beats of My Name is Jonas, pressing the paint-soaked sponge held in her pale hand onto the large posterboard. Sai, painting meticulously on the details, was already singing, joining Weezer on the chorus.

"We're still making noise, making noise," She sang in harmony with the voice, pulling the sponge away from the solid surface. Tenten brushed away stray tendrils of hair that had fallen out of their place behind her ear, sighing. Sai had already made his way to the piece of lounging furniture, and had his feet kicked back on the cushion.

"Just wait for it to dry." Sai answered her silent thoughts, muffling a yawn with his paint-covered hand. Tenten, in turn, only raised an eyebrow, but plopped down ungracefully on the scarlet couch. The music was quieted down (courtesy of the remote), and the small echo of verses and choruses lulled her into a dazing slumber.

--

"Tian! You look so pretty!" A sophisticated voice cut through the air. The brown-haired girl peering through the mirror turned around on the scarlet-cushioned chair, neatly laced fingers propped up on the mahogany vanity.

"Thank you, Auntie." Tian responded gratefully, blowing a few strands of hair out of her face.

"I really can't believe you're already twelve!" Her aunt exclaimed excitedly. "Now you can join us at the parties! You can find a boyfriend!" The woman looked apologetic when she saw the sullen reaction painted on the younger girl's face.

"I'm really sorry Auntie…" And with that, the girl with the mocha irises had stood up and disappeared through the door.

--

Sasuke Uchiha glanced blankly outside the mirroring window fogged up with gray condensation. The consistent tapping of rain resounding from the smoky-colored sky was a constant hum in his ears. Neji Hyuuga and Shikamaru Nara were frantically typing, throwing random pieces of paper over their shoulders in an attempt to speed up word processing, while he, the prodigious younger Uchiha, was placed on the job of speculating on precipitation.

" Hn. Whatever." He stood from his post and walked out the media room with the uneven mauve walls. As he skimmed through the spaces in the hall, he spotted a messy bunch of brown hair peeking from the low top of the loveseat.

"Ten…Ten." Inching closer, he felt a pang of strong remorse and regret, but he couldn't identify the reason why. His eyes swept over her face. Her brow was furrowed, a scowl making its way upon her parted lips, but her eyelids were rimmed with crystalline liquid.

"Why?"

--

Author's Ramblings: Wow. Wasn't that dramatic. Btw, I think Tian was never a good choice for a name, overused (in a good way) as it is. But, it was the closest thing to Tenten and a Chinese name, so…there it is!--


	8. Chapter 8:What's More To Come

Stifled

What's More to Come

Shikamaru scowled intensely. He jabbed at the miniature welt that had unfortunately popped up on his upper forehead with his mother's blackhead remover, wincing when the zit began to sting upon contact of the small metal stick. Sighing, he glared at the crystalline mirror that seemed to surround the said pimple in a spotlight.

"You know, there is facial wash." Tenten peeked through the door. He rolled his eyes.

"Men don't need to use Neutrogena." He smirked at her nonplussed face. Her perplexed look contorted into a Cheshire one.

"Then you clearly aren't a man." Tenten retorted, before grabbing her black sweater from the upstairs hall closet and flouncing down stairs. Shikamaru bore imaginary black holes into her retreating back.

"Troublesome."

--

Tenten sang boldly along to her mp3 (blaring Let Go by Edison Glass) as she strolled through the empty streets. Shadows from the tree-covered area danced along playfully with the breeze and the large amount of sunlight. Everything, other than her own vocals, was quiet. She walked past the fence that separated the Hyuuga Estate from the rest of the neighborhood, the Haruno house, the Yamanaka clan area, and lastly…The Uchiha Manor. She hesitated.

"_You stifled this too long, the dream inside is far too strong. You've got to, got to learn to let go!"_ Tenten shut her eyes for a few moments, letting the familiar yet unfamiliar feeling pass through her whole body. The breeze grew to a strong and tossing wind for a few ticking seconds, before fading down into the gentleness it was.

"_Open your lips, let out a song._" Baritone vocal chords sang deeply and perfectly in rhythm. She whipped around in surprise to meet glowing onyx eyes, seemingly warm.

"Oh, it's you." Tenten resumed her normal expression as she addressed the spiky haired boy sitting comfortably on the balcony extending into the back of the Uchiha grounds. She tilted her head to the side in question of his sudden appearance.

"What's with the face? I live here. I can stay here all I want." Sasuke replied cockily. He slouched back into the cushioned lounge-chair. Her eyes narrowed.

"Well duh." Tenten deadpanned. Mocha eyes flickered between him and the pool below. "Are you going to swim?" She asked.

"Maybe."

"Make up your mind, pretty boy."

"Yes, I am. She-he." She twitched at his last comment, before turning on her heels and heading back towards the blue house she occupied.

"I am too." Brown locks swept behind her. "You better wait for me, Uchiha."

He waited for a bit, before replying quietly.

"Gladly." Sasuke whispered.


	9. Chapter 9: Warm Promises

Summers Before Now

Summers Before Now

_"Hey, Sasuke, let's make a promise." A young girl bounded up the small tree quickly, plopping down next to a boy a year younger than her._

_"What kind of promise?" The boy asked, scooting up to make room for the brunette._

_"A promise that we'll always meet here every summer. Okay?"_

"_Oh-okay" He gave in to her focused glare. Sasuke held out an outstretched pinky, smirking._

_"Pinky promise." The girl wrapped her pinky around his, smiling all the while._

--

"Ughn…" Sasuke groaned, awakened from his catnap on the above mentioned tree. Blinking out of stupor, he heard a light tapping on his backyard fence.

"I'm coming in." It was Tenten. A light green pool towel draped over her shoulders while she held a small canvas bag that contained clothes. "Did I wake you up?"

"Nope." He climbed down from the balcony and unlatched the padlock on his fence. The metal gate swung open with a swish.

The girl swung her legs on the edge of the pool, her feet kicking in the water while the rest of her body stayed dry. Tenten removed the towel draped around her, as well as the large, baggy shirt, and slid into the pool in her black two-piece. Sasuke observed her keenly as she waded into the deep end.

"Do you remember our promise?" He yawned, leaning back onto the lounge chair next to the pool.

"Yup. And I kept it." She submerged under water, and then came back up again, nearer to him. "Why?"

"Oh nothing. Just thinking about it." Sasuke replied in ho-hum. "I wonder what would happen…"

"If everyone found about it?" She finished. Grinning, she watched him nod slowly. Floating and wriggling in the water, she headed for the middle of the pool. "Sakura would get so mad."

"Yeah, I guess. Neji would too." Sasuke looked up into the light blue sky, the breeze simmering lightly across his face.

"Neji? Why?" She looked puzzled.

"Oh, nothing." Was his answer. She didn't ask anymore, because it was just meant to be that way.

--

"Stay still." The four-pony tailed girl dug her elbow into Shikamaru's shoulder, steadying the twitching boy and her hand. Smirking, she applied the white foamy cleanser onto the raised area of skin that glowed a pinkish red. "If you want it gone, then quit moving."

"Troublesome." The pineapple haired boy addressed both the situation and Temari. In good jest of course.

--

Author's Ramblings: Well, that shows Sasuke and Tenten's revolutionary childhood promise. Btw, If you haven't played Trauma Center UTF 2 yet (came out July 1) you should. It's the freak.(Maybe I should write about it?)


	10. Chapter 10: Regards to Friends

Regards To Friends

Regards To Friends

"Woah, nice. Seether? That band's the freak!" Sasuke smirked, staring down at the band shirt he was wearing. Sure enough, 'Seether' was printed on it along with other dark designs. He turned to his friend.

"Seriously. I bought their album three weeks ago, and then this shirt." He smirked as he strummed on his shiny black electric, before pausing to finish. "It took me forever to find their CD."

" Not as popular as Sean Kingston, yeah?" Sasuke and Deidara laughed at the joke, grinning when they saw Itachi's raised eyebrows in their direction. "So, I heard you were swimming with a girl the other day. She your girlfriend?"

"Nope. More like a friend-who-people-don't-know-is-my-friend." Deidara blinked puzzled at that, then resumed his grin as he snapped a picture of Itachi in the kitchen with his Sidekick. "You know, Sasori's going to be pissed when he sees you hanging out with Itachi more than him." Deidara laughed brightly.

"Ha, he'll forgive me anyway. At least everyone knows that I'm not uke, yeah?" Itachi smirked at Sasuke's barfing gesture.

--

"_I've gone for too long, living like I'm not alive, So I'm going to start over tonight starting with you and I!" _Tenten sang boldly as she spun around on one foot. The multicolored studs on her black belt shone brightly in the sunshine, and she threw her arms up in the air, rocking to the beat of _Miracle_.

"Tenten, you seem really happy." Hinata interrupted quietly, laughing at the attention her flamboyant friend was attracting. Tenten slowed down her steps to a normal stroll and pulled out one of her earphones.

"I am! I got to go swimming for free, there was a sale in Metropark, who wouldn't be happy?!" The brunette replied cheerfully. The short green miniskirt she wore over her black skinny jeans matched with her dark red Paramore shirt. The original laces on her Space monkey converse were replaced with Japanese icon ones, and pins were scattered on her loose canvas bag.

"Eh? Swimming?" Hinata looked surprised, then realization dawned on her. "At Sasuke's?" Tenten grinned nodding.

"Yup. How are you and Naruto?" Hinata flushed red at that, but shrugged it off embarrassedly.

"Tenten, are you and Sasuke…you know-- going out?" Tenten spun around at that, placing the hand that wasn't carrying her shopping bags under her chin.

"No, not really. More like childhood buddies-something along those lines." Hinata smiled gently at her dense friend's answer. She ran a hand through one of the pockets of her blue and yellow Harajuku lovers sweater, bringing the ringing phone up to her ear.

"Neji-nii? Ah, I see. Ah, no, Tenten's not here. Okay, bye." Hinata sighed as she put the phone away. She loved her family members, but she knew how possessive Neji was of the brunette. Besides, it was obvious Sasuke liked Tenten more.

"Hinata! Let's go get pizza!" Tenten jogged back to Hinata's pace, shopping bags from MetroPark and Hot Topic trailing behind her. Hinata smiled, starting in the conversation, already aware of the notice her and her friend were getting.

--

Author's Ramblings: **laughs**. My friend said Deidara wasn't uke. I don't really get what yaoi is, but hey, she said it! Hinata's really nice. She's helping them get together. Maybe I should've put it under SasuTen? _**Miracle**_ is by Paramore, btw. GO METROPARK!!


	11. Chapter 11:There For You

There for You

There for You

Tenten clicked the pause icon on the remote of her Ipod dock as she reached across her blue comforter to retrieve her vibrating cell phone. She raised an eyebrow at to who the text was from. Tenten chose the compose icon, smiling.

To: Sasuke

_its 11pm, dude. watcha want?_

She sent the short message, glancing at her digital clock. It was exactly eleven o'clock. Her blue phone beeped once again as his reply came.

_So? Just meet me at you-know-where.:P Or I throw rocks at ur window._

Tenten grabbed her green Aeropostale hoodie, her cell phone, and her Ipod nano, waving to her brother as a sign she was going out. He rolled his eyes and waved back.

"Dad and Mom's coming home tomorrow morning, at nine." She grinned.

--

"Hey." Sasuke motioned for Tenten to climb up the tree, patting the large branch next to him. She swung on easily, and grabbed her Ipod.

"So…why'd you want to meet?" She asked. Tenten glanced up at his pale face, shadows from the large willow trees casting dark areas on it. Her eyes bore into the side of his face, and he sighed.

"_It_ happened again." He leaned back into the hollowed tree with an imperative sigh. Tenten scooted closer to him in concern.

"How bad was it?" She asked. Her mocha irises connected with his onyx ones for a few moments, the feeling lingering.

"_Really_ bad. Itachi could barely stop him from ruining _everything_.." Sasuke paused to look up at the darkened sky, squinting to locate any visible stars. "He was just really really wasted and, you know-_violent_." After a few moments of awkward silences, she answered.

"…I can't really say it's going to be alright, can I?" He chuckled at that. Sasuke felt the warmth of her soft hand upon his, squeezing it in consolation. Her head gently met his shoulder. Both pair of eyes shut tight, one spoke.

"I wish this summer wouldn't end."

"Me too."

--

Neji banged his fists angrily on the marble table, wincing when it smacked on his wrist. He glared at the busy phone line, teeth clenched in disdain.

"Why isn't she answering?!" He was furious. Tenten, after he called her more than six times, wouldn't answer her phone. He reached for the communication device again, this time dialing a different number. Waiting for it to ring a few moments, a sleepy voice answered.

"What?" Shikamaru drawled into the receiver, yawning. Neji smirked.

"Where is she?" Neji demanded. Shikamaru rolled his dark eyes in return.

"It's twelve, Neji. She's sleeping." Neji hissed unsatisfactorily. He hung up quickly.

--

Shikamaru dived back under the covers, throwing his cell phone somewhere around his room. He smirked as it clattered to the floor with a few ticks and thuds. Yawning, he looked pleased with himself.

A little white lie wouldn't hurt.

--

Author's Ramblings: Woah. That was some kind of loving! :P Shikamaru's pretty clever. Oh yeah, a question!! Should I put Sakura in the next chapter? And her little bodyguards too. Then maybe some NaruHina action?


	12. Chapter 12:Awkward Teenage Moments

Sasuke slammed his head against the mahogany table for the fifteenth time that day, doing nothing to ease the painful and irritating throb in his left temple. Eyes closed, he blanched as the bright-haired visitor stomped into the kitchen mercilessly, veins visible on the pale knuckles that clenched the door tightly.

"You…" Sasuke _almost_ shivered at the threatening tone. "Where is Deidara?!" Sasori hissed scathingly. The redhead had been dutifully informed that _his_ blonde roommate (Sasuke would call him Sasori's boy-toy) had been missing for quite a while from the Akatsuki dorms had somehow reappeared at the Uchiha compound. He was too prideful and too dignified-_ass_- to admit that he was jealous. After all, Deidara wouldn't do anything too _naughty_ with Itachi right? "I...do not know. Nope, not at all."

"Oh, _really_...Shall I remind you of the time in kindergarten when you" Sasori began, but was cut off anyway. Sasuke had brought his sore forehead upon the dining table once again, mumbling something about seeking help from his dear friend his conscience. Which, of course, he already did, because his conscience was concerned about his brain's physical condition and told him to quit it to hell. "IN THE UPSTAIRS BEDROOM!" He yelled in desperation, clutching a blue duffel bag and leaping out the wide-scale second story window.

Sasori blinked regardlessly. He didn't need to worry about Sasuke. In fact, he had seen Sasuke leap off a _five_-story building and land _unscathed_ once, when he was twelve. Of course, Itachi had gotten pissed off when reporters came to the compound looking for the loony Wonderboy who did such a _stupid_ thing.

"Upstairs bedroom, huh…" Sasori placed a hand under his chin, in deep thought. "Upstairs," He saw realization, "Bed…room…" So Deidara was in the upstairs bedroom, probably relaxing on a comfy memory foam mattress, drinking iced tea, and making little clay figurines, and _snuggling_ with Itachi. Oh, that's all good… "WHAT THE HELL! DEIDARA, YOU CHEATING IMBECILE!"

--

Tenten looked up from her D.Gray-Man manga, looking around with an arched eyebrow. She could've sworn she heard someone yelling. Well, Temari wasn't around, so it was clear no one was yelling at Shikamaru for being a cheating imbecile… Shrugging, she leafed through the pages, back to her original spot. "Oh well."

--

Sasuke landed gracefully on his two feet, dashing away as fast as he could down the dusty street, occasionally knocking down a stinky trash-bin or two. Shaking his shoulders, he shrugged off the feeling of pure unadulterated horror. He jumped over a rickety fence and turned a corner, ending to a two-story house that stood out as his sanctuary. Damn it, how the heck did he get himself into this business?

_"Sa-su-ke!" Deidara whined innocently, nearing the dark-haired boy whose eyes were glued to the HDTV. He was ignored. "Oi, Sasuke!" Still no answer from the teen who was caught up in the world of suspended animation. "SASUKE, DON"T MAKE ME KISS YOU!" Sasuke choked on the piece of unhealthy and cheesy Doritos that he had placed inside his mouth, turning to the voracious blonde._

_"Whaddaya want?" He cleared his throat and retorted rudely. Deidara smiled creepily. _

_"Sasori might come here today you know." Sasuke shrugged like he didn't care. And he really didn't care. Sheesh, as long as he got to watch his gorey sci-fi, he couldn't care less if Sasori and Deidara were ignoring each other or backside banging. "And we need time alone. So I need you to get out of the house as soon as he comes, okay? Besides, you haven't seen Tenten in a while, right?"_ _Sasuke looked at him like he was stupid._

_"But this is my house!" Sasuke complained indignantly. Deidara just smirked. _

"_You know, it could always be a threesome, even if the third one is unwilling." Sasuke never looked so panicked and scared in his life as he did then. _

Ringing the doorbell a good ten times, he caught his breath, shivering at the nauseating memory. As soon as the front door opened, he jumped inside, landing uncomfortably on his tushy as he slammed the door closed. Tenten snorted, staring at her best friend in disbelief. "Deidara making inappropriate moves on you again?" His face said it all. Snickering, she tossed the duffel bag he dropped onto the welcome mat at his head.

"Hn." Standing up to his full height, Tenten stood back with widened eyes and whistled at the height difference. "Woah…Sasuke, did you grow taller again?" He shrugged, smirking lightly. He dusted himself off.

"Maybe." He plopped onto the red leather sofa, enjoying the cold air-conditioning. "I'm staying over for a few days. Until the Sand rabbits evacuate the house." Tenten just sighed snarkily, switching on the TV to CSI as she sat herself down onto the couch as well. A decapitated head in a bio-hazard bucket was the main focus of the tube. Sasuke leant against a comfy pillow, and watched the girl with interest, but quickly averted her questioning eyes. He began to think. Damn it, why was she so pretty? She looked like a _boy_ when they were little! Now she was too _sexy_ for her own good!

"What're you thinking about?" Tenten asked curiously. Sasuke seemed to be having a mental battle with himself at the moment. "You're thinking about _naughty_ thoughts right now, aren't you?" She teased in a tone that she had easily mimicked from the school bitch. Now, _that_ sent Sasuke into a horny man's land. She received no answer. "I-di-ot!" Setting herself onto his lean stomach, Tenten watched his expression change from dazed, to shocked, to flustered, to the combination of all three.

"YOU'RE SEXY!" He yelled. Shit. Sasuke mentally mutilated himself. God damn it, why did his thoughts have to leave his mouth? Tenten blinked, and after a few seconds of mind processing, her whole face lit up like a red Christmas light.

"T-Thank you…" And after another few minutes of awkward silence, thought to herself. _I could say the same…_ A voice in her annoying mind wanted to freely tell Sasuke this fact.

"Y-you think I-I'm s-sex-xy?" Ah, the hell! Had she said that out loud? Sasuke seriously looked like had a tomato sunburn on his face.

"Y-yeah." Then came the awkward laughter. Then the uncomfortable silence. And then, someone immediately barges in! (T-T-P checks originality scheme meter-0) Shikamaru walked in, counting how much green paper he spent on the trip to the Nara deer park, clutching a plastic bag full of pinecones he had picked up from the ground on the way back. But those poor pinecones stayed in the bag, suffocating because Shikamaru was too much of a lame man to drop them on the floor, or be surprised at the scene before him all the same.

"Are you guys getting it on already?" Sasuke and Tenten were speechless at his lack of interest, or maybe it was the fact he was holding deer biscuits and pinecones… Shikamaru shrugged, yawning into the palm of his hand. "Well, whatever. Just don't mess up the couch too much. It's troublesome to clean it up, you know." And he trudged upstairs, munching on a deer biscuit along the way.

--

Author's Note: Right. Awkward teenage moments. I wonder if Tenten's already noticed Sasuke's got a boner? :) Well, I haven't been on fanfiction for a while, but I do have to say the SasuTen pairing fics are pretty rad.


	13. Chapter 13: Acid First Kisses

Acid First Kisses

Acid First Kisses

Sasuke was never one to be mopey and a 'Drama Queen' as his brother had called him. And he certainly wasn't sexually frustrated, seeing as he had successfully controlled himself on Tenten's couch. See, he was tough like that!

Even though he did have a boner, but we'll ignore that fact.

Sitting lazily on the red velvelty couch, he sighed and took a long sip from his Pepsi can, gulping it down as the sweeter carbonated acid seeped in his throat. He stretched as he set the soda can down, his black Taking Back Sunday band shirt rising a bit above his navel, displaying quite a bit of pale muscle.

_He sighed._

--

Tenten, noticing his forlorn dread, raised a delicate eyebrow. "What's got you depressed?" Sasuke simply stayed dazed. She rapped her knuckles against the counter. "Hello? Dude? Is your brain still in there?" No answer.

Sighing, she dragged him to the counter, and he didn't pull away, though he seemed far from calm. "Talk." Tenten settled her legs against the sides of his body, her neon socks crossing each other behind his strong back. Sasuke shifted in discomfort, edging nearer to where the counter was, even nearer to where she sat.  
"It's nothing." He received no reply. " I'm serious, it's nothing." Sasuke shrugged, wrapping his arms around her slim waist as she tensed, but the awkwardness settled and eventually, everything around them seemed to disappear, like the background noise of traffic on the freeway, blending into a blur.

"Sasuke…" The previous uncomfortably teenage moments they had earlier that day was deep in the back of their minds as she traced his thin-but not too jaunty- face, running her fingers over his piercing on his bottom lip, over the small scar, barely noticeable on the side of his face, stopping when she once again traced his smooth lips.

_He was perfect. _

Sasuke neared his face closer to hers. The small breaths he took swept over her cherry lips, and she had to take in a large breath just to catch the breath she lost. "Tenten." And Sasuke closed his lips over hers, melding their mouths together coolly and maddeningly. Tenten let his tongue prod her lip.

_What an awesome first kiss._

Tenten sighed into his mouth as she took another breath, enjoying the incredibly warm feeling as he mapped the inside of hers.

_But this is Sasuke. He's been famous for playing girls, and you know it. This could be just another fling to him._

Tenten shoved him away gently, pressing her hands to his chest and pushed lightly. He looked hurt but calm, and she couldn't afford to have _just_ _a fling_ with anybody.

_Especially not him._

"Sasuke, what's wrong with you? Jeez." Her voice was cracking as she traced her swollen lip, and the tingling feeling inside her mouth running through her cheek. She could bet all the money she had that her face was red. Sasuke frowned slightly.

"Was there something wrong with that?" Sasuke rested his forehead on her shoulder, wallowing in worry. Did he do something wrong? Was it something he said?

_Did she feel the same way?_

"Sasuke… If it's just another fling then- please, keep me out of this." Tenten sighed into his onyx locks, feeling vulnerable. She didn't want to lose the friendship they had- if it was going to mess up their relationship, then she'd rather be platonic with him than risk it on something more-something more _intimate_.

"But it's not, Ten." Please, Tenten pleaded, _please_. "I can't let this go. I've been waiting for a long time." Sasuke whispered bitterly into her ear, breathing in small, hot breaths. "_Months_, Ten. Maybe even _more_ than that."

"Idiot. You _better_ mean it." She wrapped her arms around his neck, savoring the cool smell of fresh rain and-she giggled at this-Pepsi. Sasuke reciprocated the action as he wrapped his arms firmly around her waist, bringing her much closer to him, hefting her off the blue-tiled counter. Tenten tip-toed to meet his lips' entrancing movement once again, and after they broke off, they simply held each other, and they stayed like that for a long time.


	14. Chapter 14: Epilogue

Tenten slung her Jansport over her shoulder, feeling the heavy Calculus and Modern History textbook press against her back

Tenten slung her Jansport over her shoulder, feeling the heavy Calculus and Modern History textbook press against her back. Students filed around, freshmen throwing paper balls at each other, sophomores picking on them. Then it was them; the juniors, who readily walked through the gates exiting Konoha Academy, eager to get out of the institute when it was only the first day of school. Tenten stopped to pop a few quarters in the vending machine, waiting for the bottle of Pepsis to roll out.

"Good day to you, ma'am." Sasuke approached her, voice low and husky, wrapping firm arms around her slim waist, catching the attention of jealous classmates-both for her and him.

"Weirdo." She threw one of the Pepsi over her shoulder, relinquishing the wince when she hit Sasuke square in the shoulder. She laughed.

Everything was just so, well-fast. Apparently, her former family had a thing for training their adolescent girls into high-class whores, and she was lucky that she had ended up in the orphanage a few years back. In fact, everything was so open-ended, she didn't get how everything fell into place; her foster family and her brother were all fine, and Sasuke had been so bold as to declare to the whole family branch that she and him were, indeed, a couple. Sakura had thrown a bitch fit after she found out from Shikamaru who basically told Ino, but all's well, ends well.

"Hello? Earth to Ten!" Sasuke waved teasingly in front of her eyes, taking a long sip from the plastic bottle. She shrugged it off, a breathless smile crawling its way onto her face as he set the bottle down and embraced her tightly, like she was the only thing keeping him alive. He grabbed her hand, as she, caught breathless by the affection, followed after, watching him from his dark jeans to his small grin.

And they walked away hand-in-hand.

--

A/R: Amen! It has finally ended. I know it's really, really rushed, but I lost interest in the whole family thing so, ha! I'm going to start the sequel, and I solemnly swear, it's going to be better. Then I can add all the little blackmailed photo shots and new obstructions!


End file.
